Hydrogen – Fuel Cell Technology, Infrastructure

U.S. Department of Energy Invests in Hydrogen Fuel Cells

May 15, 2013
• by Staff

The U.S Department of Energy launched H2USA, a public-private partnership focused on increasing hydrogen fuel for transportation infrastructure. This includes advancing the commercial development of fuel cell electric vehicles. There are 13 current members of the partnership comprising of automakers, government agencies, gas suppliers, and hydrogen and fuel cell industries.

The Energy Department is looking forward at hydrogen fuel to back-up power systems and fuel infrastructure-related vehicles such as forklifts. Because of hydrogen technology fuel costs have reduced 35 percent since 2008 and by more than 80 percent since 2002. Hydrogen continues to show value as fuel cell durability has doubled since 2005.

Current members of the H2USA partnership include the American Gas Association; Association of Global Automakers; the California Fuel Cell Partnership; the Electric Drive Transportation Association; the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association; Hyundai Motor America; ITM Power; Massachusetts Hydrogen Coalition; Mercedes-Benz USA; Nissan North America Research and Development; Proton OnSite; American Honda Motor Co.; and Toyota Motor North America.

Hawaii's distributor of Toyota, Lexus, and Subaru vehicles has opened the state's first publicly accessible hydrogen fueling station and later this month will begin leasing the Mirai fuel cell vehicle, Toyota has announced.

Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz Vans division showed off a concept Sprinter that delivers power from a hydrogen fuel cell stack to an electric motor that could achieve an effective range of 500 kilometers (310 miles). Executives showed the vehicle to journalists in Hamburg, Germany, on July 3.